I was struggling to sit comfortably in the humid heat of that particular afternoon at the marketplace. It was a Wednesday morning and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. My wife, Jennifer woke up early that morning with me to prepare our rabbits so they could look their best for whoever wandered by our shop. By the time customers started perusing the aisles of booths; Jennifer and I were fully prepared while other vendors were still counting their copper pieces for the day.
“Ryan, my love,” She said to me, “I am so glad we are doing this together.” She looked at me with bright emerald eyes that gleamed in the sunlight.
“Me too.” I held her hand and smiled back at her. I had my reservations about selling rabbits at first, because I didn’t think they would be a great source of income. Since the pandemic, people had to decide what was really important to buy and what they could live without. There were other vendors selling necessities, like the woman in the booth next to ours. The minute anyone walked by her booth, the strong clean smell of bleach would immediately draw them in. However, whenever anyone tried to buy, she would dance around with the price until her customers stormed off in frustration; an act that I personally witnessed when a group of women approached her. She had the products that people needed, but not the proper salesman touch. I often considered talking my wife out of selling rabbits and changing our shop in to a bleach store like the woman next to us, but she shot me down every time. Her main argument was that the bleach saleswoman would have a fit if we competed with her, and I didn’t doubt that she would call us out on it. Above everything, I wanted to avoid getting scolded by that woman and her shrill voice. Jennifer wanted people to appreciate the smaller things in life, like the joy that a pet can give. She had faith in the rabbits, and I needed to give it a chance for her.
“You know, I might just buy a bunny with this money you guys.” I almost hadn’t noticed the woman walk up to our humble little booth. Her companions were behind her, shooting her suspicious looks. I found it odd that they didn’t call her by a name, but opted to call her the Librarian. “Kelle, how much money do we have right now?”
“You aren’t getting a bunny; we need to buy the supplies for the water distiller.” Kelle sounded blunt and strict in her answer. “Come on, what’s in the booth next to the bunnies?” She looked over at me, which gave me my cue to answer.
“Oh, I own that booth as well with my beautiful wife. She is in charge of selling supplies to properly care for the rabbits that we sell.” I gestured over to Jennifer, whose face lit up at the opportunity of selling a rabbit. I continued, “Our starting price is two copper pieces for one rabbit, and five for the care supplies.”
“You two are precious.” The Librarian clapped her hands together and giggled. She pulled out a pouch that jingled with the sound of coins when she placed it on the counter. She began to reach for the coins to pay for a rabbit, but was stopped by her companion before she could go through with it. “Hey! What’s your problem?”
Her friend simply ignored her and said to me, “I’m sorry sir, but we can’t afford to spend our money on anything but the supplies we came here for.”
Crestfallen, I grasped my wife’s hand and looked over to her once again. She looked disappointed, but smiled at the women in front of us. “Alright. But if you change your mind, feel free to come back any time and give one of our rabbits a good home.”
“Oh, I’ll be back.” The Librarian replied slyly. She took her pouch of coins back from Kelle and proceeded to walk away from our booth, but not before glancing back at us and winking.
Jennifer waved goodbye to our potential buyer and wrapped her arms around my shoulders. “I really hope she comes back.” She would have liked to sell to that woman, but knowing that there were still people that enjoyed the small things in life, even after the pandemic, made her just as happy. I was happy for her, and I was happy that we decided to take this path with our lives together.
“Ryan, my love,” She said to me, “I am so glad we are doing this together.” She looked at me with bright emerald eyes that gleamed in the sunlight.
“Me too.” I held her hand and smiled back at her. I had my reservations about selling rabbits at first, because I didn’t think they would be a great source of income. Since the pandemic, people had to decide what was really important to buy and what they could live without. There were other vendors selling necessities, like the woman in the booth next to ours. The minute anyone walked by her booth, the strong clean smell of bleach would immediately draw them in. However, whenever anyone tried to buy, she would dance around with the price until her customers stormed off in frustration; an act that I personally witnessed when a group of women approached her. She had the products that people needed, but not the proper salesman touch. I often considered talking my wife out of selling rabbits and changing our shop in to a bleach store like the woman next to us, but she shot me down every time. Her main argument was that the bleach saleswoman would have a fit if we competed with her, and I didn’t doubt that she would call us out on it. Above everything, I wanted to avoid getting scolded by that woman and her shrill voice. Jennifer wanted people to appreciate the smaller things in life, like the joy that a pet can give. She had faith in the rabbits, and I needed to give it a chance for her.
“You know, I might just buy a bunny with this money you guys.” I almost hadn’t noticed the woman walk up to our humble little booth. Her companions were behind her, shooting her suspicious looks. I found it odd that they didn’t call her by a name, but opted to call her the Librarian. “Kelle, how much money do we have right now?”
“You aren’t getting a bunny; we need to buy the supplies for the water distiller.” Kelle sounded blunt and strict in her answer. “Come on, what’s in the booth next to the bunnies?” She looked over at me, which gave me my cue to answer.
“Oh, I own that booth as well with my beautiful wife. She is in charge of selling supplies to properly care for the rabbits that we sell.” I gestured over to Jennifer, whose face lit up at the opportunity of selling a rabbit. I continued, “Our starting price is two copper pieces for one rabbit, and five for the care supplies.”
“You two are precious.” The Librarian clapped her hands together and giggled. She pulled out a pouch that jingled with the sound of coins when she placed it on the counter. She began to reach for the coins to pay for a rabbit, but was stopped by her companion before she could go through with it. “Hey! What’s your problem?”
Her friend simply ignored her and said to me, “I’m sorry sir, but we can’t afford to spend our money on anything but the supplies we came here for.”
Crestfallen, I grasped my wife’s hand and looked over to her once again. She looked disappointed, but smiled at the women in front of us. “Alright. But if you change your mind, feel free to come back any time and give one of our rabbits a good home.”
“Oh, I’ll be back.” The Librarian replied slyly. She took her pouch of coins back from Kelle and proceeded to walk away from our booth, but not before glancing back at us and winking.
Jennifer waved goodbye to our potential buyer and wrapped her arms around my shoulders. “I really hope she comes back.” She would have liked to sell to that woman, but knowing that there were still people that enjoyed the small things in life, even after the pandemic, made her just as happy. I was happy for her, and I was happy that we decided to take this path with our lives together.